Question

A team member has told you he needs to climb on a concrete structure to do a task and that he is sure it can hold him. What should you tell him?

1) Tell him to be sure to wear his safety equipment while he is on the structure.
2) Tell him you are not sure it will hold him, but unfortunately, you don't see any other way to do the task.
3) Tell him to check with the foreman to make sure the structure has been determined to be able to support a person of his weight.
4) Tell him to be sure not to drop anything while he is up there.

Answer 1

The team member should be advised to check with the foreman to ensure the concrete structure can support his weight for safety reasons. It is essential to confirm structural support before climbing on any structure, just as engineers must consider various forces when designing buildings.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct response to the team member who wants to climb on a concrete structure is to tell him to check with the foreman to ensure the structure can support his weight. Safety on a worksite is paramount, and this includes checking the structural support of any element that a person might need to climb on. It's not enough to assume that a structure can hold someone; it must be confirmed, as various factors such as the structural integrity, the weight it can hold, and whether it has been designed to support the additional load need to be considered.

When working at heights, using safety equipment and not dropping anything are important, but they are secondary to ensuring the structure's capability to support the weight. This principle is similar to the consideration engineers must take when designing buildings; they need to account for different factors, like the change in the value of g (acceleration due to gravity), which can slightly vary with altitude, potentially affecting the forces on a structure.

Therefore, advising the person to speak to the foreman reinforces a culture of safety and due diligence, which is vital for any worksite.